1 Kings 15-19

I Kings 15

¹And in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam son of Nebat, reigned hath Abijam over Judah;

²three years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother is Maachah daughter of Abishalom;

³and he walketh in all the sins of his father, that he did before him, and his heart hath not been perfect with Jehovah his God, as the heart of David his father;

⁴but for David's sake hath Jehovah his God given to him a lamp in Jerusalem, to raise up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem,

⁵in that David did that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah, and turned not aside from all that He commanded him all days of his life -- only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite;

⁶and war hath been between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.

⁷And the rest of the matters of Abijam, and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? And war hath been between Abijam and Jeroboam;

⁸and Abijam lieth with his fathers, and they bury him in the city of David, and reign doth Asa his son in his stead.

⁹And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned hath Asa over Judah,

¹⁰and forty and one years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother is Maachah daughter of Abishalom.

¹¹And Asa doth that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah, like David his father,

¹²and removeth the whoremongers out of the land, and turneth aside all the idols that his fathers made;

¹³and also Maachah his mother -- he turneth her aside from being mistress, in that she made a horrible thing for a shrine, and Asa cutteth down her horrible thing, and burneth it by the brook Kidron;

¹⁴and the high places have not turned aside; only, the heart of Asa hath been perfect with Jehovah all his days,

¹⁵and he bringeth in the sanctified things of his father, and his own sanctified things, to the house of Jehovah, silver, and gold, and vessels.

¹⁶And war hath been between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days,

¹⁷and Baasha king of Israel goeth up against Judah, and buildeth Ramah, not to permit any one going out and coming in to Asa king of Judah.

¹⁸And Asa taketh all the silver and the gold that are left in the treasures of the house of Jehovah, and the treasures of the house of the king, and giveth them into the hand of his servants, and king Asa sendeth them unto Ben-Hadad, son of Tabrimmon, son of Hezion king of Aram, who is dwelling in Damascus, saying,

¹⁹‘A covenant is between me and thee, between my father and thy father; lo, I have sent to thee a reward of silver and gold; go, break thy covenant with Baasha king of Israel, and he goeth up from off me.'

²⁰And Ben-Hadad hearkeneth unto king Asa, and sendeth the heads of the forces that he hath against cities of Israel, and smiteth Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-Beth-Maachah, and all Chinneroth, besides all the land of Naphtali;

²¹and it cometh to pass at Baasha's hearing, that he ceaseth from building Ramah, and dwelleth in Tirzah.

²²And king Asa hath summoned all Judah -- there is none exempt -- and they lift up the stones of Ramah, and its wood, that Baasha hath built, and king Asa buildeth with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.

²³And the rest of all the matters of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, and the cities that he built, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? Only, at the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet;

²⁴and Asa lieth with his fathers, and is buried with his fathers in the city of David his father, and Jehoshaphat his son reigneth in his stead.

²⁵And Nadab son of Jeroboam hath reigned over Israel, in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigneth over Israel two years,

²⁶and doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and goeth in the way of his father, and in his sin that he made Israel to sin.

²⁷And conspire against him doth Baasha son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, and Baasha smiteth him in Gibbethon, which is to the Philistines -- and Nadab and all Israel are laying siege against Gibbethon --

²⁸yea, Baasha putteth him to death in the third year of Asa king of Judah, and reigneth in his stead.

²⁹And it cometh to pass, at his reigning, he hath smitten the whole house of Jeroboam, he hath not left any breathing to Jeroboam till his destroying him, according to the word of Jehovah, that He spake by the hand of His servant Ahijah the Shilonite,

³⁰because of the sins of Jeroboam that he sinned, and that he caused Israel to sin, by his provocation with which he provoked to anger Jehovah, God of Israel.

³¹And the rest of the matters of Nadab, and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

³²And war hath been between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.

³³In the third year of Asa king of Judah reigned hath Baasha son of Ahijah over all Israel in Tirzah, twenty and four years,

³⁴and he doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and walketh in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin that he caused Israel to sin.

I Kings 16

¹And a word of Jehovah is unto Jehu son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying,

²‘Because that I have raised thee up out of the dust, and appoint thee leader over My people Israel, and thou walkest in the way of Jeroboam, and causest My people Israel to sin -- to provoke Me to anger with their sins;

³lo, I am putting away the posterity of Baasha, even the posterity of his house, and have given up thy house as the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat;

⁴him who dieth of Baasha in a city do the dogs eat, and him who dieth of his in a field do fowl of the heavens eat.'

⁵And the rest of the matters of Baasha, and that which he did, and his might, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

⁶And Baasha lieth with his fathers, and is buried in Tirzah, and Elah his son reigneth in his stead.

⁷And also by the hand of Jehu son of Hanani the prophet a word of Jehovah hath been concerning Baasha, and concerning his house, and concerning all the evil that he did in the eyes of Jehovah to provoke Him to anger with the work of his hands, to be like the house of Jeroboam, and concerning that for which he smote him.

⁸In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah reigned hath Elah son of Baasha over Israel in Tirzah, two years;

⁹and conspire against him doth his servant Zimri (head of the half of the chariots) and he is in Tirzah drinking -- a drunkard in the house of Arza, who is over the house in Tirzah.

¹⁰And Zimri cometh in and smiteth him, and putteth him to death, in the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigneth in his stead;

¹¹and it cometh to pass in his reigning, at his sitting on his throne, he hath smitten the whole house of Baasha; he hath not left to him any sitting on the wall, and of his redeemers, and of his friends.

¹²And Zimri destroyeth the whole house of Baasha, according to the word of Jehovah, that He spake concerning Baasha, by the hand of Jehu the prophet:

¹³concerning all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his son, that they sinned, and that they caused Israel to sin to provoke Jehovah, God of Israel, with their vanities.

¹⁴And the rest of the matters of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

¹⁵In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, reigned hath Zimri seven days in Tirzah; and the people are encamping against Gibbethon, which is to the Philistines;

¹⁶and the people who are encamping hear, saying, ‘Zimri hath conspired, and also hath smitten the king;' and all Israel cause Omri head of the host to reign over Israel on that day in the camp.

¹⁷And Omri goeth up, and all Israel with him, from Gibbethon, and they lay siege to Tirzah.

¹⁸And it cometh to pass, at Zimri's seeing that the city hath been captured, that he cometh in unto a high place of the house of the king, and burneth over him the house of the king with fire, and dieth,

¹⁹for his sins that he sinned, to do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, to walk in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin that he did, to cause Israel to sin;

²⁰and the rest of the matters of Zimri, and his conspiracy that he made, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

²¹Then are the sons of Israel parted into halves; half of the people hath been after Tibni son of Ginath to cause him to reign, and the half after Omri;

²²and stronger are the people that are after Omri than the people that are after Tibni son of Ginath, and Tibni dieth, and Omri reigneth.

²³In the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah reigned hath Omri over Israel twelve years; in Tirzah he hath reigned six years,

²⁴and he buyeth the mount Samaria from Shemer, with two talents of silver, and buildeth on the mount, and calleth the name of the city that he hath built by the name of Shemer, lord of the hill -- Samaria.

²⁵And Omri doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and doth evil above all who are before him,

²⁶and walketh in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and in his sin that he caused Israel to sin, to provoke Jehovah, God of Israel, with their vanities.

²⁷And the rest of the matters of Omri that he did, and his might that he got, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

²⁸And Omri lieth with his fathers, and is buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son reigneth in his stead.

²⁹And Ahab son of Omri hath reigned over Israel in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab son of Omri reigneth over Israel in Samaria twenty and two years,

³⁰and Ahab son of Omri doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah above all who are before him.

³¹And it cometh to pass -- hath it been light his walking in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat? -- then he taketh a wife, Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Zidonians, and goeth and serveth Baal, and boweth himself to it,

³²and raiseth up an altar for Baal, in the house of the Baal, that he built in Samaria;

³³and Ahab maketh the shrine, and Ahab addeth to do so as to provoke Jehovah, God of Israel, above all the kings of Israel who have been before him.

³⁴In his days hath Hiel the Beth-Elite built Jericho; in Abiram his first-born he laid its foundation, and in Segub his youngest he set up its doors, according to the word of Jehovah that He spake by the hand of Joshua son of Nun.

I Kings 17

¹And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, saith unto Ahab, ‘Jehovah, God of Israel, liveth, before whom I have stood, there is not these years dew and rain, except according to my word.'

²And the word of Jehovah is unto him, saying,

³‘Go from this place; and thou hast turned for thee eastward, and been hidden by the brook Cherith, that is on the front of the Jordan,

⁴and it hath been, from the brook thou dost drink, and the ravens I have commanded to sustain thee there.'

⁵And he goeth and doth according to the word of Jehovah, yea, he goeth and dwelleth by the brook Cherith, that is on the front of the Jordan,

⁶and the ravens are bringing to him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening, and of the brook he drinketh.

⁷And it cometh to pass, at the end of days, that the brook drieth up, for there hath been no rain in the land,

⁸and the word of Jehovah is unto him, saying,

⁹‘Rise, go to Zarephath, that is to Zidon, and thou hast dwelt there; lo, I have commanded there a widow woman to sustain thee.'

¹⁰And he riseth, and goeth to Zarephath, and cometh in unto the opening of the city, and lo there, a widow woman gathering sticks, and he calleth unto her, and saith, ‘Bring, I pray thee, to me, a little water in a vessel, and I drink.'

¹¹And she goeth to bring it, and he calleth unto her and saith, ‘Bring, I pray thee, to me a morsel of bread in thy hand.'

¹²And she saith, ‘Jehovah thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but the fulness of the hand of meal in a pitcher, and a little oil in a dish; and lo, I am gathering two sticks, and have gone in and prepared it for myself, and for my son, and we have eaten it -- and died.'

¹³And Elijah saith unto her, ‘Fear not, go, do according to thy word, only make for me thence a little cake, in the first place, and thou hast brought out to me; and for thee and for thy son make -- last;

¹⁴for thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, The pitcher of meal is not consumed, and the dish of oil is not lacking, till the day of Jehovah's giving a shower on the face of the ground.'

¹⁵And she goeth, and doth according to the word of Elijah, and she eateth, she and he, and her household -- days;

¹⁶the pitcher of meal was not consumed, and the dish of oil did not lack, according to the word of Jehovah that He spake by the hand of Elijah.

¹⁷And it cometh to pass, after these things, the son of the woman, mistress of the house, hath been sick, and his sickness is very severe till that no breath hath been left in him.

¹⁸And she saith unto Elijah, ‘What -- to me and to thee, O man of God? thou hast come unto me to cause mine iniquity to be remembered, and to put my son to death!'

¹⁹And he saith unto her, ‘Give to me thy son;' and he taketh him out of her bosom, and taketh him up unto the upper chamber where he is abiding, and layeth him on his own bed,

²⁰and crieth unto Jehovah, and saith, ‘Jehovah my God, also on the widow with whom I am sojourning hast Thou done evil -- to put her son to death?'

²¹And he stretcheth himself out on the lad three times, and calleth unto Jehovah, and saith, ‘O Jehovah my God, let turn back, I pray Thee, the soul of this lad into his midst;'

²²and Jehovah hearkeneth to the voice of Elijah, and the soul of the lad turneth back into his midst, and he liveth.

²³And Elijah taketh the lad, and bringeth him down from the upper chamber of the house, and giveth him to his mother, and Elijah saith, ‘See, thy son liveth!'

²⁴And the woman saith unto Elijah, ‘Now, this I have known, that a man of God thou art, and the word of Jehovah in thy mouth is truth.'

I Kings 18

¹And the days are many, and the word of Jehovah hath been unto Elijah in the third year, saying, ‘Go, appear unto Ahab, and I give rain on the face of the ground;'

²and Elijah goeth to appear unto Ahab. And the famine is severe in Samaria,

³and Ahab calleth unto Obadiah, who is over the house -- and Obadiah hath been fearing Jehovah greatly,

⁴and it cometh to pass, in Jezebel's cutting off the prophets of Jehovah, that Obadiah taketh a hundred prophets, and hideth them, fifty men in a cave, and hath sustained them with bread and water --

⁵and Ahab saith unto Obadiah, ‘Go through the land, unto all fountains of waters, and unto all the brooks, if so be we find hay, and keep alive horse and mule, and do not cut off any of the cattle.'

⁶And they apportion to themselves the land, to pass over into it; Ahab hath gone in one way by himself, and Obadiah hath gone in another way by himself;

⁷and Obadiah is in the way, and lo, Elijah -- to meet him; and he discerneth him, and falleth on his face, and saith, ‘Art thou he -- my lord Elijah?'

⁸And he saith to him, ‘I am; go, say to thy lord, Lo, Elijah.'

⁹And he saith, ‘What have I sinned, that thou art giving thy servant into the hand of Ahab -- to put me to death?

¹⁰Jehovah thy God liveth, if there is a nation and kingdom whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee; and they said, He is not, then he caused the kingdom and the nation to swear, that it doth not find thee;

¹¹and now, thou art saying, Go, say to thy lord, Lo, Elijah;

¹²and it hath been, I go from thee, and the Spirit of Jehovah doth lift thee up, whither I know not, and I have come to declare to Ahab, and he doth not find thee, and he hath slain me; and thy servant is fearing Jehovah from my youth.

¹³‘Hath it not been declared to my lord that which I have done in Jezebel's slaying the prophets of Jehovah, that I hide of the prophets of Jehovah a hundred men, fifty by fifty in a cave, and sustained them with bread and water?

¹⁴and now thou art saying, Go, say to my lord, Lo, Elijah -- and he hath slain me!'

¹⁵And Elijah saith, ‘Jehovah of Hosts liveth, before whom I have stood, surely to-day I appear unto him.'

¹⁶And Obadiah goeth to meet Ahab, and declareth it to him, and Ahab goeth to meet Elijah,

¹⁷and it cometh to pass at Ahab's seeing Elijah, that Ahab saith unto him, ‘Art thou he -- the troubler of Israel?'

¹⁸And he saith, ‘I have not troubled Israel, but thou and the house of thy father, in your forsaking the commands of Jehovah, and thou goest after the Baalim;

¹⁹and now, send, gather unto me all Israel, unto the mount of Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the shrine, four hundred -- eating at the table of Jezebel.'

²⁰And Ahab sendeth among all the sons of Israel, and gathereth the prophets unto the mount of Carmel;

²¹and Elijah cometh nigh unto all the people, and saith, ‘Till when are ye leaping on the two branches? -- if Jehovah is God, go after Him; and if Baal, go after him;' and the people have not answered him a word.

²²And Elijah saith unto the people, ‘I -- I have been left a prophet of Jehovah -- by myself; and the prophets of Baal are four hundred and fifty men;

²³and let them give to us two bullocks, and they choose for themselves the one bullock, and cut it in pieces, and place it on the wood, and place no fire; and I -- I prepare the other bullock, and have put it on the wood, and fire I do not place; --

²⁴and ye have called in the name of your god, and I -- I call in the name of Jehovah, and it hath been, the god who answereth by fire -- He is the God.' And all the people answer and say, ‘Good is the word.'

²⁵And Elijah saith to the prophets of Baal, ‘Choose for you the one bullock, and prepare first, for ye are the multitude, and call ye in the name of your god, and place no fire.'

²⁶And they take the bullock that one gave to them, and prepare, and call in the name of Baal from the morning even till the noon, saying, ‘O Baal, answer us!' and there is no voice, and there is none answering; and they leap on the altar that one had made.

²⁷And it cometh to pass, at noon, that Elijah playeth on them, and saith, ‘Call with a loud voice, for he is a god, for he is meditating, or pursuing, or on a journey; it may be he is asleep, an doth awake.'

²⁸And they call with a loud voice, and cut themselves, according to their ordinance, with swords and with spears, till a flowing of blood is on them;

²⁹and it cometh to pass, at the passing by of the noon, that they feign themselves prophets till the going up of the present, and there is no voice, and there is none answering, and there is none attending.

³⁰And Elijah saith to all the people, ‘Come nigh unto me;' and all the people come nigh unto him, and he repaireth the altar of Jehovah that is broken down;

³¹and Elijah taketh twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of Jehovah was, saying, ‘Israel is thy name;'

³²and he buildeth with the stones an altar, in the name of Jehovah, and maketh a trench, as about the space of two measures of seed, round about the altar.

³³And he arrangeth the wood, and cutteth in pieces the bullock, and placeth it on the wood, and saith, ‘Fill ye four pitchers of water, and pour on the burnt-offering, and on the wood;

³⁴and he saith, ‘Do it a second time;' and they do it a second time; and he saith, ‘Do it a third time;' and they do it a third time;

³⁵and the water goeth round about the altar, and also, the trench he hath filled with water.

³⁶And it cometh to pass, at the going up of the evening-present, that Elijah the prophet cometh nigh and saith, ‘Jehovah, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to-day let it be known that Thou art God in Israel, and I Thy servant, that by Thy word I have done the whole of these things;

³⁷answer me, O Jehovah, answer me, and this people doth know that Thou art Jehovah God; and Thou hast turned their heart backward.'

³⁸And there falleth a fire of Jehovah, and consumeth the burnt-offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and the water that is in the trench it hath licked up.

³⁹And all the people see, and fall on their faces, and say, ‘Jehovah, He is the God, Jehovah, He is the God.'

⁴⁰And Elijah saith to them, ‘Catch ye the prophets of Baal; let not a man escape of them;' and they catch them, and Elijah bringeth them down unto the stream Kishon, and doth slaughter them there.

⁴¹And Elijah saith to Ahab, ‘Go up, eat and drink, because of the sound of the noise of the shower.'

⁴²And Ahab goeth up to eat, and to drink, and Elijah hath gone up unto the top of Carmel, and he stretcheth himself out on the earth, and he placeth his face between his knees,

⁴³and saith unto his young man, ‘Go up, I pray thee, look attentively the way of the sea;' and he goeth up and looketh attentively, and saith, ‘There is nothing;' and he saith, ‘Turn back,' seven times.

⁴⁴And it cometh to pass, at the seventh, that he saith, ‘Lo, a little thickness as the palm of a man is coming up out of the sea.' And he saith, ‘Go up, say unto Ahab, ‘Bind -- and go down, and the shower doth not restrain thee.'

⁴⁵And it cometh to pass, in the meantime, that the heavens have become black -- thick clouds and wind -- and the shower is great; and Ahab rideth, and goeth to Jezreel,

⁴⁶and the hand of Jehovah hath been on Elijah, and he girdeth up his loins, and runneth before Ahab, till thine entering Jezreel.

I Kings 19

¹And Ahab declareth to Jezebel all that Elijah did, and all how he slew all the prophets by the sword,

²and Jezebel sendeth a messenger unto Elijah, saying, ‘Thus doth the gods, and thus do they add, surely about this time to-morrow, I make thy life as the life of one of them.'

³And he feareth, and riseth, and goeth for his life, and cometh in to Beer-Sheba, that is Judah's, and leaveth his young man there,

⁴and he himself hath gone into the wilderness a day's Journey, and cometh and sitteth under a certain retem-tree, and desireth his soul to die, and saith, ‘Enough, now, O Jehovah, take my soul, for I am not better than my fathers.'

⁵And he lieth down and sleepeth under a certain retem-tree, and lo, a messenger cometh against him, and saith to him, ‘Rise, eat;'

⁶and he looketh attentively, and lo, at his bolster a cake baken on burning stones, and a dish of water, and he eateth, and drinketh, and turneth, and lieth down.

⁷And the messenger of Jehovah turneth back a second time, and cometh against him, and saith, ‘Rise, eat, for the way is too great for thee;'

⁸and he riseth, and eateth, and drinketh, and goeth in the power of that food forty days and forty nights, unto the mount of God -- Horeb.

⁹And he cometh in there, unto the cave, and lodgeth there, and lo, the word of Jehovah is unto him, and saith to him, ‘What -- to thee, here, Elijah?'

¹⁰And he saith, ‘I have been very zealous for Jehovah, God of Hosts, for the sons of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant -- Thine altars they have thrown down, and Thy prophets they have slain by the sword, and I am left, I, by myself, and they seek my life -- to take it.'

¹¹And He saith, ‘Go out, and thou hast stood in the mount before Jehovah.' And lo, Jehovah is passing by, and a wind -- great and strong -- is rending mountains, and shivering rocks before Jehovah: -- not in the wind is Jehovah; and after the wind a shaking: -- not in the shaking is Jehovah;

¹²and after the shaking a fire: -- not in the fire is Jehovah; and after the fire a voice still small;

¹³and it cometh to pass, at Elijah's hearing it, that he wrappeth his face in his robe, and goeth out, and standeth at the opening of the cave, and lo, unto him is a voice, and it saith, ‘What -- to thee, here, Elijah?'

¹⁴And he saith, ‘I have been very zealous for Jehovah, God of Hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant, Thine altars they have thrown down, and Thy prophets they have slain by the sword, and I am left, I, by myself, and they seek my life -- to take it.'

¹⁵And Jehovah saith unto him, ‘Go turn back on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus, and thou hast gone in, and anointed Hazael for king over Aram,

¹⁶and Jehu son of Nimshi thou dost anoint for king over Israel, and Elisha son of Shaphat, of Abel-Meholah, thou dost anoint for prophet in thy stead.

¹⁷‘And it hath been, him who is escaped from the sword of Hazael, put to death doth Jehu, and him who is escaped from the sword of Jehu put to death doth Elisha;

¹⁸and I have left in Israel seven thousand, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that hath not kissed him.'

¹⁹And he goeth thence, and findeth Elisha son of Shaphat, and he is plowing; twelve yoke are before him, and he is with the twelfth; and Elijah passeth over unto him, and casteth his robe upon him,

²⁰and he forsaketh the oxen, and runneth after Elijah, and saith, ‘Let me give a kiss, I pray thee, to my father and to my mother, and I go after thee.' And he saith to him, ‘Go, turn back, for what have I done to thee?'

²¹And he turneth back from after him, and taketh the yoke of oxen, and sacrificeth it, and with instruments of the oxen he hath boiled their flesh, and giveth to the people, and they eat, and he riseth, and goeth after Elijah, and serveth him.